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I’ve been using RAW Darktable, which is free, and it works well on Mac and Linux OS. I think it is the best free RAW processor. I like the sharpening and noise reduction. Have you tried RAW Therapee for Windows – or do you shoot in RAW? For Gimp, I also like “wavelet denoise” and “EG Smart Redux Sharpening” (the sharpening is from FX Foundry).
As you already know, a lot of it depends on what works well for you.
Wavelet decompose is another handy GIMP plugin. Maybe we should do a new topic for GIMP techniques and uses? 😛 I’d enjoy hearing some of yours.
@dhancock That’s very interesting that you use Darktable! I did quite a bit of research on alternative RAW processors before I finally bit the bullet and spent the $98 for Lightroom. I only very briefly used Darktable when I was fooling around with Linux OS. I use Windows exclusively, but the geek in me likes to try out other OS’s just for fun. I just recently came across RAWTherapee again and gave it a try. Here’s a comparison of the same photo processed in Lightroom and RAWTherapee. Can you guess which is which? 🙂 (Obviously I didn’t edit the two exactly the same… I tried to make them match up, but I couldn’t figure out what I did differently.)
(You can click on the photos to view them full size on Flickr.)
I would definitely recommend that anyone who doesn’t want to spend money on a RAW processor take a hard look at RAWTherapee!
Wavelet decompose is one plugin that I’ve heard about, and I actually have it, but I’ve never really had a chance, or a need to use it. (Other than to try it out)
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Have you tried RAW Therapee for Windows – or do you shoot in RAW?
No, I didn’t, but I will look at this! As for RAW, I must confess that I shoot jpeg most of the time, because I have only one software (which came with my DSLR) that can handle RAW files. I decided it was better for me to shoot jpeg because I had better software for jpeg files. Too bad that GIMP can’t edit RAW files …
Can you guess which is which?
Okay, I cheated. But honestly, I had really no idea. The first one seems to have warmer colors than the second, but beyond that, the two really seem alike. Thanks for the comparison. Looks like RAWTherapee is a pretty capable software!
- This reply was modified 55 years, 4 months ago by .
I have used Darktable and RawTherapee and liked both for different reasons. I finally settled on Darktable because of the way I could view the folders. RawTherapee is available for Windows, and I am sure you will love it! You don’t have the fine detail editing ability of GIMP, but you will find it much faster to edit pictures, especially when you have more than half a dozen to do!
it looks like on the first picture you must have edited it and made it more vibrant, but i can’t tell which is which.
You don’t have the fine detail editing ability of GIMP, but you will find it much faster to edit pictures, especially when you have more than half a dozen to do!
That’s right, the main reason being that GIMP and RAWTherapee/Lightroom are designed for different jobs. GIMP is made specifically for pixel-level editing, you can control every little detail.
Lightroom/RAWTherapee, on the other hand, are geared more toward global adjustments, especially for photographs. Each program is excellent at what it does, and a combination of both is the ideal situation.
@tuvok9597, You’re right, the first definitely has more “pop” to it, but I don’t really know why! (#1 was edited with RAWTherapee, by the way…) I went back to Lightroom to try to make the 2 edits look more similar, but even pushing the “Vibrance” much further than I usually push it didn’t make much of a difference. I really should try another example, and try to get them closer together…
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